ENTERTAINMENT NEWS

Craig Mack, one of the artists who laid the foundation for Bad Boy Records, has died, the label's former director of marketing Michelle Joyce confirmed to CNN.

He was 46.

No cause of death was immediately released, though Joyce said he had been ill for some time.

His death comes days after fans celebrated the 21st anniversary of the death of his label mate Christopher Wallace, the rapper known as Biggie Smalls (a.k.a. The Notorious B.I.G.) who was gunned down in a still-unsolved murder on March 9, 1997 in Los Angeles